Illinois vs. Minnesota preview

Friday

Nov 25, 2011 at 12:01 AMNov 25, 2011 at 4:12 PM

There are still some games remaining and records to chase. The Illinois football team can still finish the season with eight wins - if the Illini end a five-game losing streak at Minnesota on Saturday and win a bowl game. Those raw numbers suggest that would be a good year for Illinois, but the second half of the season turned on coach Ron Zook.

John Supinie

MINNEAPOLIS -- There are still some games remaining and records to chase.

The Illinois football team can still finish the season with eight wins - if the Illini end a five-game losing streak at Minnesota on Saturday and win a bowl game. Those raw numbers suggest that would be a good year for Illinois, but the second half of the season turned on coach Ron Zook.

The Illini haven't won since Oct. 8 at rebuilding Indiana, and Zook entered this weekend with a 34-50 record, and athletic director Mike Thomas would only say he'll assess the situation at the end of the season.

With the fan base clamoring for a change, this looks like the end of the line for Zook. There might not be anything else Thomas can do in his first year on campus, even if Zook elevated the program with recruiting and periodic success in the Big Ten Conference.

Zook's status should be known by early next week, and that's the bigger story than the last regular season game in a season gone bad.

"This is the last game for a special group of seniors,'' Zook said. "Some of them, I feel like, have been around here for as long as I have, and they came here when it wasn't cool to come here.

"They've seen a lot of good things. They've seen some things not so good, but they've got a chance to do something that's never been done (at Illinois).''

Already bowl eligible in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1992, Illinois could earn bowl wins in back-to-back seasons for the first time in school history. The Illini will accept a bowl berth if offered.

The likely options among the Big Ten bowl tie-ins are the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas and the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl in Detroit. If the Illini are bounced to bowl slots left vacant by other leagues, the Pinstripe Bowl in New York, the New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque, N.M., and the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco are probable destinations, and the Illini are apparently a viable option for a bowl committee looking to fill an opening.

"He has told us the great things we can accomplish,'' Illinois quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase said. "Sometimes you forget that when you’ve kind of have some down weeks.''

Zook has two more years left on a contract that pays him $1.75 million year. The buyout is $1.3 million per season.

‘‘Morale’s good,'' Scheelhaase said. "Sure, there's guys that might be down. But when you step into the locker room and see guys ready to go, why wouldn’t you be?''

While freshman punter Justin DuVernois has been getting some nasty emails, Zook said, after a fumbled punt snap swapped momentum toward Wisconsin last weekend, two Illini are closing in on records.

Illinois senior receiver A.J. Jenkins, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., needs 113 yards receiving to break the single-season school record of 1,278 set by David Williams in 1984.

"No one wanted him to leave Florida,'' Zook said. "All his friends and so forth. But he stepped out of his comfort zone. There have been some tough days for him. Like we told him when we recruited him, 'You go and do the things that we ask you to do, you'll have a chance to have a big career.' ''

Illinois junior defensive end Whitney Mercilus leads the nation with 13.5 sacks, and his eight forced fumbles also lead the nation and tied him for the Big Ten single-season record with Michigan State Jonal Saint-Dic in 2007.

John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JohnSupinie.

*****

Illinois (6-5, 2-5) vs. Minnesota (2-9, 1-6)

When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: TCF Bank Stadium (50,805), Minneapolis

Series record: Minnesota 33-28-3

Last meeting: Minnesota 38-34 (2010)

Rankings: Both teams unranked

Radio:

TV: BTN

The line:

Coaches: Ron Zook, 34-50 in seventh year at Illinois, 57-64 in 10th year overall; Jerry Kill, 2-9 in first year at Minnesota, 129-82 in 18th year overall.

Notable: Minnesota has won eight of the last 11 games between the two teams. The road team has won the last four times, including a 35-32 victory in Illinois' first trip to TCF Bank Stadium in 2009. … During conference games, Illini linebacker Jonathan Brown ranks third in tackles (88), first in tackles for loss (14) and fifth in sacks (4.0). … Illini running back Donovonn Young is questionable because of a sprained ankle suffered after scoring two touchdowns against Wisconsin last week. … Quarterback MarQueis Gray leads the Gophers with 786 yards rushing and 1,410 passing.

Quotable: "Having eight wins as a senior class is like a pretty good season. '' -- Illini receiver A.J. Jenkins.